Hands-On Review With The Grand Seiko SBGW257 And SBGW259 Watches
I never get tired of getting new watches in hand. Even after thousands of timepieces have passed through my possession, I remain surprised at how surprised I am still able to be. The more watches I encounter, the more I must remind myself to keep an open mind and to get them on the wrist. If I’d ignored that sage advice, I might still be sleeping on the Grand Seiko SBGW257 and SBGW259.The Grand Seiko SBGW257 and SBGW259 watches would not have been watches I’d have gravitated to in the boutique. “Why not?” I hear you cry. “Do you not think they’re beautiful?” Well, yes, actually, I do think they’re beautiful. In fact, I would go as far as to say...
Our trip to the Bvlgari Manufacture in 140 pictures
LL Cool J’s lyrics “Don’t call it a comeback, I’ve been here for years” are very much in place when it comes to Bvlgari’s watches. With the recent Octo Finissimo watches, they are throwing some good punches. We’ve been raving about the Bvlgari Octo Finissimo watches a number of times, it has become one of our favorite new watches.You are probably also aware that Bvlgari is a proper watch manufacture, located in several places in Switzerland. We visited the P?le Habillage in Saignelegier,? the assembly atelier in Neuchatel, and the Bvlgari Manufacture de Haute Horlogerie in Le Sentier. In this article, we show you how things are done at Bvlgari.Bvlgar...
Japanese James Bond Calendar Auto Orient Swimmer (2021)
If it hadn’t been for this magnificent watch catch, I would never have learned that the Japanese had a Bond-like hero that fought bad guys too. In the 1965 TV drama Spy Catcher J3, Agent J3 drives a flying Corvette Stingray, but more importantly for today's story, he wears the Calendar Auto Orient Swimmer Worldtrip.Orient was one of those watch brands that I?was aware of but kept towards the bottom of my attention list for a long time. You know, we cant have them all, can we? I?somewhat liked the King Divers and the Weekly Orients, but not so much as to buy it. It was the stunningly creative dial on the Calendar Auto Swimmer Worldtrip that made me buy the first Orient watch for my coll...
Genteel Handmade Launches New Cordura Range of Straps (2021)
We know Genteel Handmade best for its luxurious, fully customizable straps. Recently, I’ve even been wearing my first fully custom band from the brand (a wiskey Maya leather deployant with brown stitching and a red goat lining) so I can fully attest to the awesome results of this flexible service. However, today the brand adds a new string to its bow. Say hello to Cordura watch straps tough fabric straps that are certainly built to last.Cordura is a nylon material that is extremely durable, water-resistant, and abrasion-resistant. Following on from Genteel Handmade’s recent decision to introduce Ready-To-Wear leather straps, so too are Cordura straps now available off the shelf. ...
H. Moser & Cie. Heritage Perpetual Calendar Enamel Dial (2021)
Reputation is everything in this industry. Brands with a good rep can sell products sight unseen. But it takes time to get to that stage. While is handing out branded blindfolds in exchange for willing clients’ credit cards as their authorized dealers herd them into an almost stockless store, the rest of the industry is fighting tooth and nail for a slice of the pie. The phenomenon has opened up some truly tempting avenues for other brands of similar heritage to raise their own prices or plug the gaps left by a rapidly ascending entry point. Meanwhile, the sideways-thinking independents are getting creative. Brands like Moser have more of an opportunity to show us what they can do. A...
Le Tour De France Heads For Switzerland With Tissot (2022)
As a lifelong road cycling fan, visiting the Tour de France is just about the biggest sporting treat I can imagine. The idea of “taking part” in a mini-stage with my fellow journalists is a privilege far beyond any station I could believe to be mine. Hanging around the finishing area, waiting for our bike-mounted heroes to arrive so we can interview them is a dream I never dared dream. And all this is possible thanks to the event’s major timing sponsor Tissot. Here’s a look ahead to the race and what we can expect from this year’s edition of Le Tour and the historic Stage 8, which will see the peloton wend its way to Lausanne where it will find a very happy Frat...
All Three Omega Speedmaster Snoopy Models
The Omega Speedmaster Snoopy is perhaps the most popular modern variation of the Moonwatch. The first Speedmaster Snoopy Award was introduced in 2003, and the third - and final - model in 2020. Where the first two Snoopy models were limited editions, the last version is not. That said, the Speedmaster Silver Snoopy 50th Anniversary is not that easy to obtain.In this video, I will guide you through all three versions from 2003, 2015, and 2020, giving you some background on each of them. Where the first Speedmaster Snoopy Award from 2003 was based on the then-standard Speedmaster reference 3570.50 with a Snoopy patch at 9 o’clock and a case back with the same image, the second Speedmaste...
Start A Watch Collection for $5,000: Seiko, Omega, Breitling
The time has finally come. Most of the editors have had their chance to tell you about the watch collection that they’d create for $5K. It's always a fun hypothetical situation to explore. With a snap of the fingers, you find yourself at the start of the watch-collecting road. There's nothing in your watch box, but you have $5,000 to get started - what do you do? Now, in this scenario, we maintain our collecting experience and knowledge of watches. In the case of many of us, this comes from years of obsession with these wrist-mounted timekeepers. However, it seems these lists offer only brief snapshots of where our heads are at any given time. In my case, I had written down a list, but...
Blancpain Bathyscaphe Quantime Complet Sees Two New Models
Say “Fifty Fathoms” and most people will immediately think of the classic dive watch from 1953. The Blancpain Fifty Fathoms introduced the dive-watch aesthetic as we know it today. The Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe, however, has been a regular part of the Blancpain collection since 2013. With its more modern and minimalist looks, it is a different line of watches than the more traditional Fifty Fathoms. Within the Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe line, Blancpain introduces new materials and different complications. It’s safe to say that it’s the brand’s more progressive line of divers. The latest additions to the lineup are the Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe Quantime Complet i...
Summer Splash Semifinal 2: Serica Vs. NOMOS
All right, we are down to the second semi-final match of our 2022 Summer Splash contest! We are closing in on the freshest, brightest, most fun watch to take on your sunny adventures. Today's contestants are Nacho with his Serica 5303-3 and Thomas with the NOMOS Club Campus Future Orange. The Serica left RJ's Oris ProPilot X for dead. The NOMOS made short work of Ben's Oris Aquis. This, then, is the epic battle of the Oris killers.Cast your votes once more to put your favorite in the finals of Fratello Summer Splash 2022.Thomas: NOMOS Club Campus Future OrangeI don't like to come to a fight unprepared, so I requested my candidate Club Campus from NOMOS to give it some wrist time in real life...
Hands-On: Arken Alterum A Titanium Travel Watch
Part of the allure of microbrands is following the journey of the creators. Seeing how the people behind the brands evolve their design language and products over time provides a fascinating insight into their minds. Admittedly, some of these brands amount to very little and rehash the same concepts repeatedly. They pump out “limited edition” after limited edition” with not much more than a slight change in a watch’s color scheme. That’s not been the case with the British microbrand Arken. With the release of its new Alterum watch, I believe Arken is starting to transcend the “microbrand” label and venture into what I would call “independent br...
Hands-On: The Citizen Promaster Mechanical Diver 200m
We are fans of the Citizen Promaster Mechanical Diver 200m series. The watches in it offer incredible value for money and bring back a design from 1977 that is as relevant today as it was back in the late? ’70s. The latest addition to Promaster Mechanical Diver 200m lineup is an all-black version, reference NB6025-59H. This stealthy take on the model looks quite different from its more traditional counterparts. It comes with a gray gradient dial, and in combination with the black DLC treatment, this creates a different beast altogether. So how does it compare to the regular black-dial model? Time to find out.As I said, quite a few members of the Fratello team are fans of the Citizen Pr...
Waiting For A Watch Is A Luxury Experience
Have you been to the historic center of Amsterdam lately? There's a lovely area in the Jordaan neighborhood called the Negen Straatjes (Nine Streets) where you'll find interesting fashion boutiques, a vintage watch shop, nice restaurants, cool bars, artisanal ice cream parlors, and also a place where they serve hand-cut French fries. If you were there, you couldn't overlook long lines everywhere in the narrow streets. People will happily wait for an hour to get a scoop of pistachio ice cream from Massimo. If people are willing to spend an hour waiting for a $3 snack, they probably also can't wait to get in line for a new watch, be it physically or on a waitlist. Waiting for a watch is a luxu...
New: Hublot Classic Fusion Essential Grey Series
When the new Hublot Classic Fusion Essential Grey models hit our screens, they immediately stood out. We always love seeing what the brand comes up with for its Classic Fusion. After all, the watch tells Carlo Crocco’s original Hublot story. But there is more to it than that. The Classic Fusion also still looks just as relevant as it did when it was first introduced. The new 42mm and 45mm monochromatic gray models show that perfectly. They are the latest additions to Hublot’s Essential Grey series and might be the best yet.The idea of Hublot’s Essential Grey series is simple but effective. The brand has created a monochromatic version of one of its models sold exclusively t...
Hands-On: Certina DS Super PH1000M STC
While my love of vintage-infused watches is cyclical, my love of dive watches is constant. There is just something about the purity and a sense of purpose that will always keep the genre on my favorite list. When done right, as with the shape and size of Certina’s DS Super PH1000M STC, a touch of retro can truly dial up the desirability scale.Certina's DS line represents value-for-money sports watches, and I'll admit to having a favorite in the larger-than-life presence of the orange-dial PH1000M. But a deep petrol blue might just sway me as I unbox the new DS Super PH1000M STC edition with its good cause in mind.Certina's brand strengthsOver the last few years, Certina has risen as a ...
Hot Take: The Zenith Defy Skyline edition Paris
The Summer Olympics will kick off in Paris in less than a month. Zenith has created the Defy Skyline edition Paris to help celebrate the occasion. It uses a different style of dial, which may leave potential buyers wishing that this limited edition watch wasn’t only offered in France.Omega is the first brand that comes to mind when we think of the Olympics and watches. However, during my recent visit to a Patek Philippe exhibition in London, I saw that other brands are excited to celebrate the major sporting event. Zenith is also getting in on the act, but the brand’s release is far more subtle. There’s no direct linkage to the upcoming fortnight, but the timing is good. Th...
The Patek Philippe Alarm Travel Time 5520RG
You've seen the Patek Philippe Alarm Travel Time before but never in a two-tone look. Since Watches and Wonders 2024, there’s the reference 5520RG, a very complicated and exclusive travel watch in rose and white gold. The colorway might sound very 1990s, but the sunburst dial is very en vogue.Do we start with the exclusive or the complicated nature of the Alarm Travel Time 5520RG? Since this is Fratello, maybe it’s better to start with the watch's inner workings that put it in Patek's Grand Complications collection. The mechanism that makes traveling the globe easy is the in-house, self-winding AL 30-660 S C FUS. The movement is protected by four patents and allows the wearer to ...
The Best Watches Under $5,000: Thor's Picks
Another challenge accepted, and this time, it’s a hard one. As you know, $5,000 is not the -bag-filling stash it once was. Yes, I’m old, but it wasn’t that long ago that $5K was big money. Finding the best watches under $5,000 is not easy these days.I say that reasonably subjectively, even understanding Lex’s point about expecting big-brand luxury for the money. And for some reason, some brands have deliberately nudged their prices just above the $5K cutoff to $5,100 or even $5,050. I’ve worked in sales for many years, so I’m pretty sure we all know the allure of $4,900 or $3,990, right? This simple psychology seems lost today, but I still found plenty of ...
Lexus Dutch Watch Heritage event in Schoonhoven
Since last weekend (27th of June), the first Dutch Watch Heritage event opened its doors in Schoonhoven, The Netherlands. Schoonhoven is (in The Netherlands) famous for its jewellery and horology school and its museum. The museum, lead by Gemke Jager, hosts the Dutch Watch Heritage event from the 27th of June till the 5th of July.The main idea behind the Dutch Watch Heritage is to display the (often hidden) horological treasures that we have in The Netherlands, owned by private collectors or aficionados. This first event has more than 100 watches up for display, covering the last 100 years of watchmaking and including watches like the first Patek Philippe Nautilus, an incredible collection o...
Marcus Anniversary Unique Masterpieces Exhibition
If you are in London between the 3rd of July and the 2nd of October, make sure to pay 170 New Bond Street in London a visit. Haute Horlogerie boutique Marcus is celebrating three important things, his late father’s arrival in England in 1932, his 70th birthday and the 10th anniversary of his magnificent shop in London.On the picture above, you see owner Marcus Margulies wearing his AP RO, as also featured in the book about 40 years of Royal Oak.The Marcus watch store in London only hosts very interesting and often unique timepieces, including those of Alain Silberstein, Audemars Piguet (they always have +150 models in store), Greubel Forsey, Ikepod, MCT, Richard Mille and Urwerk to nam...